Orlando Magic Daily
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Who has next for the Orlando Magic Hall of Fame?

By Philip Rossman-Reich

Bo Outlaw was the hustle part of heart and hustle and someone who should expect a call to the Orlando Magic Hall of Fame. (Photo credit should read RHONA WISE/AFP via Getty Images)
Bo Outlaw was the hustle part of heart and hustle and someone who should expect a call to the Orlando Magic Hall of Fame. (Photo credit should read RHONA WISE/AFP via Getty Images) /
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Jameer Nelson, Orlando Magic, Chicago Bulls
Jameer Nelson endeared himself further to Orlando Magic fans by sticking with the team and thriving without Dwight Howard. (Photo by Fernando Medina/NBAE via Getty Images) /

Jameer Nelson

Few players mean more to the Orlando Magic than Jameer Nelson. Like this year’s Hall of Fame inductee, Darrell Armstrong, Jameer Nelson quickly endeared himself to fans as someone who would always give his all and show fierce loyalty to the organization. He was quickly a fan favorite.

Nelson was solid for the entirety of his Magic career. The only blip was Stan Van Gundy’s decision to play him in the 2009 Finals after he missed the last half of the season with a torn labrum. Nelson was not quite the same in the biggest moment for the franchise. It was still sad that Nelson could not participate in the biggest moment of his career.

Nelson averaged 12.6 points per game and 5.1 assists per game in 10 seasons with the Magic. He is one of two players to last that long with the team.

Nelson ranks second in games played, leads the team in assists, is fifth in steals and fifth in points. He is one of the luminaries in the franchise’s history. Nelson won the Rich and Helen DeVos Community Enrichment Award in 2013.

Magic fans were happy to see Jameer Nelson hanging with Dwight Howard again during the dunk contest, even if Howard was in a Los Angeles Lakers uniform for the contest. Magic fans still have a deep affection for Nelson.

His induction into the Orlando Magic Hall of Fame is a foregone conclusion. The question is when.

The whole 2009 group probably will have to wait for Howard to go into the Hall of Fame before unlocking them. It makes sense that the best player of each era goes in before some of the role players — yes, both Jameer Nelson and Rashard Lewis were All-Stars, but that was Dwight Howard’s team. Stan Van Gundy will likely join them at some point.

Fans are eagerly awaiting the team to recognize some of the players in that 2009 group. Likely they will have to wait for Dwight Howard to go in first. And the Magic still have a host of players from the original era that they should be aiming to honor first too.

Nelson will go in right after Howard. He is one of the most important figures in Magic history and one of the biggest influencers on the franchise’s history. Nelson is always welcomed back in Orlando.